Dutch Antilles Express B.V. was an airline of the Dutch country of Curaçao. It operated high-frequency scheduled services in the Dutch Caribbean to United States, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Haiti, and Suriname. Its main base was at Curaçao International Airport. Due to an escalating debt from poor market conditions, the government of Curaçao stepped in on May 31, 2011, to keep the airline in the air. The airline has been purchased from Arnold Leonora by the Curaçao government for a cash injection sum of two injections of 1.5m Guilders (approx US$838,000 each). The company slogan was Your Caribbean Wings. In August 2013, the company's management and employees approached the Curacao government through various departments for a new loan of 5m Guilders (approx. US$2.8 million) to, among other items, pay employee salaries outstanding from July 2013. The appeal for the loan was denied by the Curacao Parliament on August 16, 2013. The Court of First Instance of Curaçao declared DAE bankrupt on August 30, 2013. History Original operations The airline started operations with three ATR 42s in 2003 as BonairExel (part of the ExelAviation Group) and soon expanded to encompass most of the Dutch Antilles and Aruba. Although an Embraer ERJ 145 was used on the Bonaire-Aruba flights, the aircraft was soon disposed of again, returning to Air Exel. Although it flew its aircraft in the Exel color scheme; operated with Air Exel aircraft; and flew with Air Exel cabin staff; the airline was wholly owned by a Dutch millionaire residing on Bonaire, and operated simply as a franchise carrier. As the local market was rather small, a subsidiary was formed on Curaçao, named CuraçaoExel. Dutch Caribbean Airlines (DCA) declared bankruptcy not long after. ExelAviation noticed that the Caribbean airlines were very profitable, and set up its own ArubaExel, causing distress amongst the other franchise carriers. With ExelAviation expanding too rapidly in Europe and the Caribbean, a lawsuit against Nick Sandman (owner of the BonairExel and CuraçaoExel) demanded back the invested amount, and confiscated back its ATR 42.This link dissolved both ExelAviation Group and the Caribbean franchised airlines. With minimal funds, the airline made an attempt to distance itself from its partner, changing their names to Bonair Express and Curaçao Express. This move permanently broke up the alliance, causing no more profits to go to the ailing ExelAviation Group. Previously the airline's head office was in the Plasa Medardo SV Thielman in